Edward Swift, Lewis' 17 year-old son, discovered NGC 4969 = Sw. VI-52 on 27 Apr 1887 and recorded "eeeF, S, R, ee diff." The Swifts' position is 26 sec of RA west of CGCG 074-004. Neither CGCG nor MCG label this galaxy as NGC 4969. The SDDS reveals this is a double galaxy within a common halo.

400/500mm - 18" (5/16/09): faint, small, round, 22" diameter, fairly low even surface brightness. A mag 15.5 star is just off the north edge.

600/800mm - 24" (5/20/17 and 5/22/17): at 375x; faint to fairly faint, small, round, 18" diameter. Contains a slightly brighter, very small nucleus. A faint mag 15.5 star is 25" N.

NGC 4969 is a difficult double system in a common halo. At 375x, the nucleus of the fainter companion was barely visible as a "bulge" on the east side of the main galaxy. It was easier at 450x and occasionally appeared as a distinct quasi-stellar "knot" at the east edge of the glaaxy. The centers of the pair are separated by only 10"-12"!

CGCG 072-005, the brightest in a faint trio, lies 4' E. It appeared very faint, small, round, 18" diameter, very small brighter nucleus..

Notes by Steve Gottlieb